ESEN
Which one to use?Advancedstructurestructure
GetvsBe
'Get' + past participle emphasizes process or change of state; 'be' + past participle is the standard, formal passive.
Side-by-side comparison
Get
structureThe passive with "be" ("was invited") is more formal and common in written texts. It describes the resulting state or the process without emphasizing how it happened.
Her car got scratched in the car park while she was doing the weekly shopping inside.
He got stopped by the police because one of his brake lights was not working properly.
She got promoted after just one year, her manager was very impressed with her results.
Be
structureThe passive with "get" ("got invited") is more informal and conversational. It implies something happened suddenly or unexpectedly to the subject, with a slight element of surprise.
The old school building was built in 1923 and is now a protected heritage site.
All the guests were welcomed at the door by the host and offered a welcome drink.
The book was translated into thirty languages and sold millions of copies around the world.
Common mistake
"Get + participle" is the colloquial passive (describes an event or change, often unexpected). "Be + participle" is the standard passive and the only one valid for describing a state: "The window IS broken" (state). "The window GOT broken" (event). In formal texts (academic, legal), always use "be-passive".
Trick to remember it
- •Very formal text? "Be-passive" always.
- •Unexpected or dramatic event? "Get-passive" sounds more natural: "My laptop got stolen".
- •Current state? Only "be": "The report IS ready".
- •Colloquial process/event? Both work.
Quick rule
- •"Get + participle" = colloquial passive, emphasis on event/change.
- •"Be + participle" = standard passive, formal, or for resultant state.
- •Formal documents: always be-passive.
Did you know?
The GET-passive is one of the grammatical phenomena that has grown most in frequency in written English since 1950. Linguistic corpora show its use has roughly doubled in informal English during that period. Some linguists argue the GET-passive is gaining ground because it offers something the BE-passive cannot: "The window was broken" is ambiguous between state and event. "The window got broken" can only be the breaking event, the ambiguity disappears. This useful semantic distinction may be exactly what is driving its expansion in everyday speech.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
The window _____ broken during the football match.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
He _____ fired last week. Nobody expected it.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Related word pairs
Active voicevsPassive voice
In the active voice the subject acts; in the passive voice the subject receives the action.
GetvsBecome
"Get" signals an informal or quick change; "become" signals a formal or gradual one.
Have something donevsGet something done
'Have something done' and 'get something done' mean someone else does something for you; 'get' is more informal.
AvsAn
'A' is used before consonant sounds; 'an' is used before vowel sounds.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy